Columbia Southern sponsors Relay for Life for 5th Consecutive year

by Clayton Wallace

ORANGE BEACH – Columbia Southern University is a proud sponsor of the American Cancer Society’s Alabama Gulf Coast Relay for Life for the fifth consecutive year. Last year, roughly 40 faculty and staff put on their best “boxing gear” to be a part of the “Rocky” Relay for Life Team. CSU won Best Overall Team Tailgate for having the best food and presentation thanks to the generosity of Cosmo’s Restaurant and Bar. This was the second time the university has received this award since 2004 when they also won Best Team Karaoke and first place for the Survivor’s Team Challenge.

“Cancer has touched this online university in many ways,” said Robert Mayes, CSU President. “Our involvement in this event will help CSU be a part of the solution.”

This year’s Alabama Gulf Coast Relay for Life will be held April 25 at the Orange Beach Sportsplex. CSU is just one of at least 12 teams who have committed to walk throughout the night until 6 a.m. April 26. “It is important to have dedicated teams like CSU take their part in Relay seriously. Team members give up much of their free time in the weeks leading up to Relay,” ACS Community Representative Kim Bertagnolli said. “Many of the events team members participate in are fun, but it’s also a lot of hard work. It will all be worth it when we find a cure for cancer.”

CSU has held, and will continue to hold, several internal events to raise resources for the American Cancer Society. Fight Back with Blue Jeans, Dunking for Donations, Bake for a Cure, and Load a Plate to Save a Life are all aimed at engaging employees in one of the university’s most important values – supporting organizations that improve the quality of life.

“I can’t tell you how pleased we are to have Columbia Southern as out Platinum Sponsor again this year,” local Relay Co-Chair Jeanne Fitzgibbons said. “They have played an important role in the success of our local Relay in past years, and I look forward to working with them again this year in our quest to help find a cure for cancer.”

In addition to their role as Platinum Sponsor, CSU is also the luminaria sponsor for this year’s Relay. Luminarias are bags with candles inside and names of cancer victims and survivors printed outside. The bags will be placed around the Relay track and the candles will be lit as all lights in the park go dim. Relay participants will then walk several laps in silence to remember loved ones affected by cancer. Suggested donations for placing a luminaria are $5. To find out more information on the luminarias, contact CSU’s Katie Coale at 800-977-8449 ext. 216 or Katie.Coale@columbiasouthern.edu.

One of the nation’s first completely online universities, CSU offers completely online accredited degree programs with open enrollment, maximum transfer credit, and a flexible learning style. Associate, bachelor, graduate and postgraduate programs are available in a variety of fields including fire science, criminal justice, business administration, information technology, human resource management, occupational safety and health, and more. Undergraduate and graduate certificate programs are also available to provide focused training in specialized areas.

For more information, please visit www.columbiasouthern.edu or call 981-3771.

Relay For Life to host Dessert Extravaganza for cancer survivors

by Clayton Wallace

The Relay for Life Alabama Gulf Coast Committee would like to invite all area cancer survivors and caregivers to a “Dessert Extravaganza” reception April 10 at the Gulf Coast Culinary Institute on the Gulf Shores campus of Faulkner State Community College.

Sponsored by Gulf Coast Cancer Centers, the reception will feature the best desserts student pastry chefs at FSCC have to offer. The purpose of the reception is to honor area residents who have fought back against cancer and bear the moniker of “Survivor.” According to Relay Co-Chair Jeanne Fitzgibbons, the event is open to the caregivers of cancer survivors as well. “We know the person who has battled through cancer did not fight their battles alone. We want to honor those who helped their loved ones survive this terrible disease,” she said.

“The Dessert Extravaganza is a departure from the survivor’s breakfasts we have had in the past,” said Survivor Chairman Margaret Bemis, a 13-year cancer survivor. “This event wil be held after business hours so survivors who work can attend without missing work. In years past, many survivors could not attend the breakfast because of work. We wanted to change that this year.”

The Alabama Gulf Coast Relay will take place April 25 at the Orange Beach Sportsplex. The national theme of this year’s Relay is “Celebrate. Remember. Fight Back.”
Reservations must be made by April 8 for the “Dessert Extravaganza.” They may be made by calling Bemis at 504-1135 or Fitzgibbons at 981-1524. “We want to see every cancer survivor on Pleasure Island there,” Bemis said. “Survivors can go out to dinner before the event, and finish the evening eating their just desserts.”

Search continues for missing boat

Crew includes man from Gulf Shores

Friday, March 28, 2008

By GUY BUSBY

Staff Reporter

U.S. Coast Guard crews continued searching the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday for two boaters -- one of them from Gulf Shores -- and their vessel missing since the weekend.

The 35-foot sailboat, Fly Away, was reported missing Monday by the wife of one of the two men, according to Coast Guard reports.

The men were identified Thursday as Thomas Edwards, 68, of Gulf Shores and Charles Daggett, 66, of St. Petersburg, Fla., according to Coast Guard reports and public records.

Click here to read the complete article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Spring bird-banding sessions begin Saturday

by Kimberly Shumack

Tranquil nature scenes are brought to life by the sudden and distinct call of an unknown bird in the distance. Discover the birds behind those calls at the upcoming spring bird-banding session slated for Saturday that will continue through April 11 at the Fort Morgan State Historic Site. The Alabama Gulf Coast hosts thousands of migratory birds each year since the area serves as their first stop in the continental United States.

While the banding will began daily just before dawn and end around noon, the best hours are early morning. Guests are reminded to bring a lawn chair, binoculars and insect repellent but to leave the pets at home. There is no charge for this annual event but guests must pay the fort admission to gain access to the banding station. Fort admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for children 6-18 and free to those under 5. A family pass is $12 and will admit two adults and two children.

More than 1,800 birds representing 76 different species were recorded in spring 2007 by the Hummer/Bird Study Group, which organizes this annual event. Founded by Bob Sargent and Martha Sargent, this group holds a large number of all the required hummingbird banding permits in the world. They gather valuable information about the health, behavior and habitat of these migratory birds in addition to giving visitors the chance to touch, hold and release the birds.

While the spring and fall bird-banding events represent the peak migratory periods in April and October, respectively, an abundance of native birds can be found year round on the Alabama Coastal Birding Trail.

For more information on this extensive trail, visit www.alabamacoastalbirdingtrail.com. For more information on the Spring Bird Banding Session, visit www.hummingbirdsplus.org or call 1-800-745-SAND.

Cancer patient fundraiser Saturday at Alligator Alley

by Carol Powers

A fundraiser will be held from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday at Alligator Alley to benefit Karla Powers.

Powers, 36, is a cancer patient with three children and is the daughter of Francis and Debbie Powers.

Tickets are $10 and include pulled-pork plates with all the trimmings, live entertainment throughout the day, multiple drawings for door prizes and a viewing of Alligator Alley's own "Captain Crunch."

An additional raffle for a brand new golf cart will also take place; tickets are $20 each.

Family members said donations can be made in Powers' name at any United Bank branch.

Click here to visit Alligator Alley's website.

It's sausage time again in Elberta

Firefighters to increase number of links served as event marks 30th year

Friday, March 28, 2008
By GUY BUSBY
Staff Reporter

Food is a part of many festivals, but over the last 30 years, one form of festival snack has become linked with not only the event, but the community.

This year, the Elberta Sausage Festival will be Saturday, starting at 8 a.m. at the town park. Steve Kirkpatrick, fire chief, said conditions this year look good.

"The weather is looking great and we're going up on the (amount of) sausage we're serving. We're out there today putting up fire department flags under the American flags and we're really looking forward to a great day," Kirkpatrick said Thursday.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Turquoise Place benefits being renegotiated

Keen on fire station being built, officials propose dropping other public amenities

Friday, March 28, 2008
By RYAN DEZEMBER
Staff Reporter

ORANGE BEACH -- City officials are negotiating with Turquoise Place developer Larry Wireman to restructure the package of park land and capital improvements that will be given to the public when his pair of condo towers is complete.

Wireman received approval to build four Gulf-front towers, but amid the condo market downturn has decided to only construct two. As such, the public benefits package he offered as part of his full plans will be reduced.

At the time Wireman's designs were approved, municipal law required developers to provide public benefits -- things like sidewalks, beach access, parks, street lights -- to justify projects that strayed from city zoning ordinances. The towers of Turquoise Place far exceeded what was then Orange Beach's building height limit.

For the first two towers Wireman agreed to give the city a 90-foot-wide public beach access with rest rooms, dune walkovers and parking spaces along with about 6 acres on Cotton Bayou on which he would build bathrooms and a fishing pier. He also pledged up to $300,000 toward a fire station on the Cotton Bayou property, which sits across Alabama 182 from his high-rises.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Alabama's Gulf State Park feels like home

Gulf State Park, Ala. — How we vacation can be peculiar. We want to leave home, yet when choosing a place to stay, we look for places like home.

Home has luxuries and amenities that we've grown to enjoy, including enough bedrooms (and, yes, even bathrooms) for all those gathered.

If we're lucky, sometimes we find that spot, with a spacious kitchen, living space and separate dining space, a deck and screened porch.

When vacationing with our grandsons along Alabama's Gulf Coast, we found our home in a rustic, Southern setting.

At Gulf State Park, we overnighted in one of the newly built cottages. Like the other 10 cottages surrounding ours, it had a full kitchen (stocked with quality cookware and standard-size appliances), three bedrooms (each with a queen-size bed), three baths (one attached to each bedroom), two screened porches, a wraparound deck, cable television — and view across placid Lake Shelby to the coastal skyline.

The living room, with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and a television, had a large storage cabinet. Had I not been traveling with a 3-year-old, it would never have occurred to me that the cabinet could serve as a child's respite for an afternoon nap. Be advised, however, that the haven can be short-lived if your older brother discovers where you have taken refuge with your beloved, tattered pillow and blanket.

But, not to worry, the cabinet has room enough for two if you're small enough and want a napmate.

Built in 2006, the cottages in Gulf Shores boost the overnight accommodations at Gulf State Park, which has 20 modern cabins and 496 improved campground sites with modern bathhouses.

Two brick chimneys near the cottages are reminders of the power of Mother Nature.

Hurricanes Frederic, Ivan and Katrina, in turn, stomped across the coastline, tossing toilets and appliances into vacant lots, ripping roofs from buildings and toppling walls. Once the winds had blown to sea, locals scratched their heads and wondered when — or if — rebuilding would come.

Click here to read the full article from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Search continues in Gulf for missing sailors

Coast Guard crews are continuing to search the Gulf of Mexico today for two boaters and their vessel missing since Sunday.

The search for 35-foot sailboat, Fly Away, and its two occupants, Thomas Edwards, 68, of Gulf Shores and Charles Daggett, 66, of St. Petersburg, Fla., has been expanded west to Corpus Christi, Texas, Coast Guard Petty Officer Thomas Blue said today.

The boat was scheduled to arrive in Panama City on Sunday before continuing on to Corpus Christi, Blue said. The men left Clearwater, Fla., on Saturday, according to Coast Guard reports.

Click here for the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Gulf Shores Man Missing on Sailboat in Gulf of Mexico

March, 26, 2008- Clearwater Florida - Coast Guard rescue coordinators are asking boaters to be on the look out for two overdue sailors aboard the 35-foot sailboat, Fly Away, scheduled to have arrived in Panama City, Fla., Sunday.

The sailors, one 68-years old of Gulf Shores, Ala., and the other 66-years old, of St. Petersburg, Fla., were reported overdue Monday by the wife of one of the missing men after she hadn't received a scheduled phone call from her husband. The two men, whose names are being withheld pending next-of-kin notification, were reported to have left Clearwater, Fla., Saturday morning and were expected to arrive in Panama City Sunday night.

The vessel is a 35-foot Pearson sailboat with the Alabama registration number AL1644AG. The boat has a maroon hull with white superstructure and white sails. If anyone has any information on the boaters' whereabouts, they are asked to call Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, at 727-824-7506 or on marine VHF radio channel 16.

"We are searching an area spanning from Clearwater to Apalachicola, Fla.," said Petty Officer 2nd Class Phillip Peacock, a rescue coordinator at Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg. "Because of the size of the search area, we are asking mariners to be on the lookout for any possible signs of boaters in distress, which includes a disabled vessel, radio broadcasts, flare sightings and debris in the water."

The Coast Guard Cutter Coho, from Panama City, the Coast Guard Cutter Hawk, from St. Petersburg, an HC-130 search plane and HH-60 Jayhawk rescue helicopter, from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, an HU-25 Falcon search jet, from Coast Guard Air Station Mobile, Ala., along with rescue crews from Coast Guard Station Panama City, the Coast Guard Auxiliary, Air National Guard, Ala., Civil Air Patrol, Ala., and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, are searching the Gulf of Mexico and Intracoastal Waterway for the boaters.

Controversial development in Gulf Shores

Matt Barrentine

The life blood of Gulf Shores is tourism and city officials want to keep it that way by strengthening zoning laws for short-term rentals. But residents say that change could create more problems.

“Who do I call? When I'm up at midnight because there's people out there ‘yahooin'. They just go off their night shift," said one resident.

More speeches like that were made at a packed city council meeting Tuesday afternoon. And it was just one project that brought all this attention.

The concern started with a home on West Fourth Street. It's a home that has 18 bedrooms. Residents say it's going to be used not for tourists but as a boarding house for seasonal workers. Packed two to a room 36 people may live there. And under the proposed zoning law, meant for tourists renting vacation homes, it would be legal.

“We’re going to create a ghetto in our own neighborhoods and it's not going to happen overnight, it's going to happen gradually over time," said Jim Rayfield, a resident who is leading the opposition to any zoning law that wouldn't curb these developments.

Click here to read the full article and watch the video from Fox 10 News.

It's time for state to fight NMFS on snapper regs

by Jeff Dute

The National Marine Fisheries Service is threatening to further shorten the red snapper season in the Gulf of Mexico this year if Florida and Texas stand firm in their decisions not to match federal regulations in their state waters, which extend out nine miles.

Such a decision would be another blow to Alabama's once-lucrative charter industry.

As it now stands, red snapper season would run from June 1 until Sept. 30. NMFS says if the two states keep their waters open, the 2.2-million pound recreational total allowable catch will be reached much sooner, and the season would have to close Aug. 5.

NMFS is basing this assessment on its data from 2007, which suggests the recreational sector exceeded its share of the Gulf's red snapper bounty by 500,000 pounds.

NMFS says the vast majority of the overage can be attributed to Florida's refusal to reduce the red snapper daily bag limit, which went from four fish to two in federal waters, and to eliminate the captain and crew bag on for-hire vessels.

Apparently, few mature red snapper are caught in Texas' shallow state waters. Those same waters do, however, act as nursery grounds for juvenile red snapper, and according to NMFS are the site of the greatest bycatch mortality of that size fish caught in shrimp trawls.

No matter the reasoning, shortening the season would hurt the industry in Alabama.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Gulf Shores Concert series

by Teri Westbrook

The Gulf Shores Out & In 2008 concert series is gearing up for an active season, sure to be packed with special performances by favorite and familiar artists, as well as new and exciting acts, organizers said.

Concerts are presented at 7 p.m. on select Thursdays, beginning April 10, at the Erie H. Meyer Civic Center or, for outdoor shows, in the backyard amphitheater.

The schedule includes:
April 10: Gulf Shores Middle and High School band at the Civic Center
April 17: Brent Burns in the backyard amphitheater
May 22: Cool Change in the backyard amphitheater
May 29: Bay Area Strings Community Orchestra in the Civic Center
June 26: Shane Tucker's "Elvis Remembered" in the backyard amphitheater
July 10: Doug Breau "Boom!" in the Civic Center
July 31: The Classics in the Civic Center
Aug. 7: Doug Breau "Country Roads" in the Civic Center
Aug. 28: Brent Burns in the Civic Center
Sept. 11: Cool Change in the backyard amphitheater
Sept. 25: Mithril in the backyard amphitheater
Oct. 2: Clark & Company in the Civic Center
Oct. 16: The Baldwin Pops in the backyard amphitheater
Oct. 23: Pensacola Sound Chorus in the backyard amphitheater

The series is presented by the city of Gulf Shores Special Events Division. For more information, call 968-1172 or visit www.cityofgulfshores.org.

BARC to honor Walker's legacy

by Kathy Eddy

Nominations for the first Rob Walker Animal Compassion Award are now being accepted.

The award will honor individuals who have shown exemplary devotion and care for animals in Baldwin County.

Walker served as executive director of the Baldwin County Humane Society/Baldwin Animal Rescue Center from 1998 until his death in December 2006.

BARC officials sid Walker was a compassionate advocate for animals and never turned away an animal in need. He was devoted to the well-being of all animals in Baldwin County and implemented many programs aimed at reducing the number of abandoned and abused animals.

Under his leadership, the Baldwin County Humane Society was restructured as a rescue agency for homeless dogs and cats. His efforts resulted in thousands of pets finding new homes. He also helped develop low cost spay and neuter programs for low income families.

Persons wishing to nominate an individual for the award should send the name, phone number, address and e-mail, if known, of the person being nominated to: The Baldwin Animal Rescue Center, P.O. Box 206, Fairhope, AL 36533, or e-mail to hsociety@bellsouth.net.

The nomination must include a brief explanation of the nominee's qualities and any specific example of services rendered in the area of animal care or animal rescue. Please mention whether the nominee is affiliated with any animal welfare group.

Nominees should possess those qualities demonstrated by Walker, including compassion, devotion, dedication, tenderheartedness, dependability and perseverance. Nominators must also include their contact information.

Nominations are due by 4 p.m. April 11. Presentation of the award will be made at BARC's annual meeting this spring.

Homeowners insurance rates soar

Sunday, March 23, 2008

By JEFF AMY

Business Reporter

Between 2001 and 2005, homeowners insurance rates in Alabama jumped by 69.1 percent -- the second-largest rise nationally -- pushing the state's average premium for the most common kind of homeowners insurance well above the national norm, according to figures from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

Only Minnesota, with a 70.3 percent increase, was worse.

The high prices come despite the fact that Alabamians have lower incomes and are typically insuring less expensive homes than in most other states.

Since 2005, the pain for homeowners in Mobile and Baldwin counties has continued to worsen, although there have been signs of improvement in the state's other 65 counties, said Insurance Commissioner Walter Bell. The commissioners' association has yet to release data for 2006 and 2007.

It's not clear when rates might moderate. Bell said that "if we don't have a catastrophe this year," he expects costs to rise "at a slower pace" beginning next year.

Bell, a former Mobile insurance executive who has been the state's insurance commissioner since 2003, said he understands that consumers are unhappy about rising prices. But he noted that private companies are still shouldering all risks of hurricane damage in Alabama, unlike in other places where state government has taken on risk or insurance is unavailable.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Missing Ono Island cats spark outrage

Sunday, March 23, 2008

By RYAN DEZEMBER

Staff Reporter

ONO ISLAND -- With people like the "Cat Lady" around, this gated community has generally been a pretty good place to be a feral cat.

There are frequent feedings, only a smattering of natural predators, and plenty of scrubby, rolling terrain in which to take cover.

But according to some people on the island, things changed last week with the arrival of a trapper hired to clear out as many of the wild Ono cats as he could.

Since then, tales of vanished pets and decimated colonies of free-roaming cats have persisted.

"I've just got a black hole in my heart," said the Cat Lady, whose name is Mary Hall.

She said that six of the 12 cats that she feeds in her yard are missing.

"I knew the stink that was going to come up," said Gary Casper, the licensed trapper who was hired by the Ono Island Property Owners Association to corral feral cats on the island as well as on state-owned property on Perdido Key. "The POA didn't know the stink that was going to come up."

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

In Mobile, aerospace is just part of a bolder vision of global commerce

The Azalea Trail Maids are high school students who serve as Mobile's city ambassadors at various events. A Deep South city much like New Orleans, Mobile has become a boomtown -- businesses can't train workers fast enough to fill thousands of jobs. (MOBILE (ALA.) AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE)

By ANDREA JAMES
P-I REPORTER

MOBILE, Ala. -- Years before many Seattleites would consider Mobile a jet-city rival, officials here set sights on the Pacific Northwest and its lucrative aerospace industry.

"We've been to Seattle several times, but I don't recall Seattle coming here," Mobile Mayor Sam Jones said in a recent interview. "While it appears that some people in Seattle don't know a lot about Mobile, Alabama, Boeing knows a whole lot about us. They've been here twice."

Indeed. Some in this Gulf Coast city speculate that The Boeing Co.'s consideration of putting 787 jetliner production in Mobile is what ultimately led the parent company of Airbus to land here.

Now Mobile has emerged as a mini-challenger to Seattle, hosting Boeing's biggest competitor in America's backyard. With a $35 billion contract endorsement from the Air Force (which Boeing is protesting), Airbus' parent company, the European Aeronautic Defense and Space Co., has pledged to build commercial airplanes along with military tankers in Alabama.

How did this happen? Mobile officials cite an embrace of globalization, an outpouring of Southern hospitality toward big business and an ability to put aside political differences at all levels of government.

The city's leaders share a common dialogue and a distaste for those who would prevent progress. Port of Mobile Director Jimmy Lyons, for example, calls people who grouse all the time, "cave people," for "citizens against virtually everything."

Click here to read the full article from SeattlePI.com.

Click here to read peoples comments on the above article.

Click here to visit www.KeepOurTanker.com for more information about this important economic issue.

Do you know where the seafood you eat is caught?

(MOBILE, Ala.) March 20 -- You may have plans to go out to eat this Easter weekend, maybe to a seafood restaurant, but do you know where that seafood was caught? A local lawmaker wants to make sure you do. As NBC 15's Andrea Ramey reports, proposed legislation would make restaurants disclose from where they get their seafood.

Three times a week, local restaurant owner David Deckle receives shipments of seafood. "This comes out of Louisiana. And this comes out of Bayou La Batre," said Deckle as he showed NBC15 News his latest shipment.

Not all of it comes from the Gulf though. "Canada. This comes out of Alaska," said Deckle.

Alabama lawmakers want to make sure restaurant owners aren't importing contaminated fish, and they want customers to know where their seafood was caught. A proposed law before the Alabama State Legislature aims to do just that.

The bill would make restaurants print a disclaimer on the menu. The disclaimer would let customers know of their right to ask restaurant workers the country of origin of all seafood products.

Click here to read the full article and watch the video on NBC-TV15 News.

Beach Barbed Wire

Surfers in Orange Beach say it's nearly impossible for them to catch a wave! Beachfront condos have put up fences and "No Trespassing" signs to keep people off their property, but the surfers says one condo has gone a little too far in their efforts to keep them out.

"We're people, not cattle," says surfer Mike Tamburello. "It's a safety issue, one of us could get hurt."

Owners of the Summer Breeze Condominiums have put up barbed wire along the property's west wall. Surfers say they use the wall as a short-cut to the beach and say other beach access points are too crowded and hard to get to.

"We're not farm animals," says Maggie Caver. "We're kids, you don't need to put up barbed wire to keep us out, they don't own the beach, it's everyone's beach, it's a public place and should be enjoyed by everyone."

A Summer Breeze property owner told News 5 the barbed wire was put up because the condo is privately owned. Surfers we spoke to say they'll take their fight to Summer Breeze Property Owner's Association and to City Hall.

Click here to watch the video news story on WKRG TV5.

Is It Really Grouper?

WKRG-TV5- Back in February, we tested 10 samples from Gulf Coast restaurants and markets. Only one D-N-A tested as real grouper. Read on to see what we reel in this time!

When Wintzell's Oyster House in Mobile put up signs like "Got Grouper. We do" and "G the Grouper Get it here," it was an open invitation to test. Bob Omainsky says he figured we would test his fish eventually. "I thought you would have tested us the first go round when you did your original sampling." So, we bought an entr-e and sent it to the lab. It turns out, Wintzell's grouper did D-N-A test as the real deal. Omainsky says they trust their supplier. "It's a reflection of our character. It's a reflection of who we are as a restaurant."

News 5 also found real D-N-A tested grouper at Boudreaux's Seafood Market in Gulf Shores. Randy Boudreaux was thrilled we picked his place! "I knew I wasn't the bad guy this time. That's why, when you did it the last time I was like I wish she would have came in here." He goes on to say that it might cost less to substitute but it's not worth it to him. "To save a little money, I could have bought a fish 4 or 5 dollars cheaper per pound and fooled 95 percent of the people."

Click here to read the full article and watch the video on WKRG-TV5.

Orange Beach Sail Camp dates listed

by Jeanne Fitzgibbons

The Orange Beach Parks & Recreation Department is getting ready for its annual summer Sail Camp.

Classes are held at Waterfront Park on Canal Road, and the camp is open to junior sailors 8½ to 14.

Morning sessions will be held from 9 a.m. to noon for beginning sailors and afternoon sessions will be held from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. for intermediate/advanced sailors. Each session will run Monday through Friday.

Sail Camp is scheduled for June 2-6, June 9-13, June 16-20, June 23-June 27, July 7-11, July 14-18, July 21-25 and July 28-Aug. 1.

Registration for Orange Beach residents began March 1, and applications for nonresidents will be accepted beginning April 1. The application fee is $100 per student per session for Orange Beach residents and $150 per student per session for nonresidents.

The fee includes hands-on sailing instruction, classroom instruction, knot tying, a daily snack and drink, camp T-shirt and an award certificate. Camp sailors are required to bring their own life jackets, towel and water bottle and should wear water shoes.

Applications for the camps are available at Orange Beach City Hall or at the Recreation Center on Canal Road. Applications can also be printed from the Parks & Recreation Web site, www.obparksandrec.com.

Applications should be submitted to the Parks & Recreation office at City Hall on Alabama 161. Mail applications to City of Orange Beach, Parks & Recreation Department, P.O. Box 458, Orange Beach, AL 36561.

Anglers oppose proposed grouper limits

Operators and recreational fishermen believe a new proposal would violate a federal rule that requires balanced distribution of fish between recreational and commercial interests.

The new rules would expand the closed season on grouper for recreational boats from one month to three, but keep the one-month closure for commercial boats. The closure would be during height of tourist season.

Recreational anglers also would have their bag limit of grouper reduced from five fish to three, while commercial boats could keep 6,000 pounds per trip.

A hearing on the proposals for Gulf grouper fishing could attract a crowd tonight in Naples.

Roy Crabtree, director of federal fisheries in the southeastern region, said the proposed regulations aren't inequitable, just different in the way they attain the same goal. According to latest fishery data, the harvest of gag grouper must be reduced 45 percent for both sectors to keep that species from being overfished.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council, which makes recommendations to the National Marine Fisheries Service under Crabtree, believes a specified closure from Jan. 15-April 15 will be easiest for recreational anglers and charter boats to deal with, in terms of planning.

"If we go for more risky management, the likelihood of in-season adjustments are more likely," Crabtree said of sudden mid-year closures. "Those are going to be disruptive and very unpopular.

Click here to read the full article from News-Press.com.

Support sought for Northrop Grumman/EADS Contract

Video from NBC-15...

Orange Beach signs sewer deal

Orange Beach will lease lines beyond its limits to private firm; bills to rise $5

Thursday, March 20, 2008

By RYAN DEZEMBER

Staff Reporter

ORANGE BEACH -- Within six months, a private company will begin treating wastewater generated by about 800 Orange Beach sewer customers who live outside the city limits.

The City Council -- minus Tracy Holiday, who was absent -- voted unanimously Tuesday to lease most of its lines north of the Intracoastal Waterway to Alabama Utility Services.

The Pell City company is building a treatment plant north of Lillian and the effluent from the Orange Beach customers will be the first that the facility handles, said David Whetstone, a lawyer for the sewer company.

Click here to read the full story from the Mobile Press-Register.

City of Orange Beach Blog- March 14th Edition

Click here to read the March 14, 2008 edition of the City of Orange Beach Blog by Ken Grimes.

Florida Fishermen fear new reef regs

A proposal to tighten regulations for private artificial reefs could lead to widespread littering in the Gulf of Mexico, some fishermen contend.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is considering a rule that would require private artificial reefs in Florida waters to be built bigger and stronger, a move some fishermen believe would make it virtually impossible for many people to deploy their own reefs, which attract open-water fish.

"You are going to see people going back to midnight runs," said Paul Redman, a Pensacola Beach charter boat captain and president of the Reef Restoration Association. "It is going to cause illegal dumping of boats with engines in them, of tires — anything that people can get their hands on and drag out there at 3 a.m. to create a reef."

The proposal calls for increasing the minimum weight of reefs from 150 pounds to 500 pounds and requiring thicker steel used in their construction. An independent observer would have to be present when the reef is deployed to ensure the proper materials are used. The coordinates of the new reef have to be given to the Corps of Engineers.

Click here to read the full article from the Pensacola News-Journal.

Click here for more information about artificial reefs.

Click here to read Florida Sportsman's article about how successful Alabama has been with the artificial reef program.

Air Force's tanker decision is just the tip of the iceberg

Sunday, March 16, 2008

By MARK S. WILLIAMS

Special to the Press-Register

LYNNWOOD, Wash. -- Economists are not the usual center of attention at social gatherings because, well, we can be pretty boring when policy is the subject. However, when the conversation turns to jobs, business growth and taxes, we can find ourselves the center of attention.

The current uproar over the Air Force tanker contract involves much more than just Northrop Grumman vs. Boeing. Let's cover the peripherals just so they're out of the way.

Boeing lost the contract due primarily to its own arrogance and its history of highly questionable ethics on this very subject.

I happen to live about 12 miles from Boeing's 767 assembly plant and have had dealings with the company. Arrogance and an expectation for preferential treatment are the norm for the company and are reflected in the attitudes of executives all the way down to the line workers.

Indeed, during the tanker contract negotiations, Boeing was described as aloof and rude, and reportedly didn't even respond to some Air Force inquiries, while Northrop Grumman was described as "bringing their A game" to the table.

When Boeing officials tout their experience, they probably don't want people to recall that in 2004 irregularities, corruption and fraud during the initial contract bid for new tankers resulted in two senior executives serving jail time and Boeing's chief executive resigning.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Other than Kennon, mayor field unclear

Sunday, March 16, 2008

So far Tony Kennon, 51, is the only person to announce his candidacy to become Orange Beach's next mayor.

The current mayor, Pete Blalock, said he hasn't decided yet whether he'll seek re-election.

Blalock was appointed in January 2006 by his peers on the City Council to take over the office when Steve Russo stepped down amid state and federal corruption indictments.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Fish harvests up despite gill net rules

Sunday, March 16, 2008
By BEN RAINES
Staff Reporter

Despite emergency state rules that cut gillnetters' fishing time almost in half, the harvest of some species of fish increased by tens of thousands of pounds in 2007.

Under the emergency rule, enacted to limit the take of Spanish mackerel, netters were prevented from fishing three nights per week.

While the mackerel harvest did decline in 2007, state landings data show that netters caught more mullet, bluefish, flounder, pompano, white trout and blue runners.

Several of those species, as well as ladyfish -- another important target for the state's net fishermen -- are key prey in the marine ecosystem.

State records show that the netters collectively earned about $2.8 million in both 2006 and 2007. The netters have argued they can't earn a living under the new rules and asked state officials to loosen the gill net regulations a few weeks ago.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Why did Tony Kennon quit?

Sunday, March 16, 2008

by Ryan Dezember, Staff Reporter

ORANGE BEACH -- During the summer of 2004, Tony Kennon, then a 47-year-old owner of a fitness center chain, campaigned door to door for a City Council spot. Eight months into his term, he quit, saying a new business venture needed his attention.

"I believe I won't be able to serve the citizens of Orange Beach in a way they should be served," Kennon said upon resigning.

Now, Kennon is a candidate for mayor, and he provides a different account of why he left office, suggesting that then-Mayor Steve Russo and City Attorney Larry Sutley, both later convicted on federal corruption charges, had threatened him.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

As Spring draws closer, water temperatures warming

New website launched to support Northrop Grumman Tanker Project

Visit website to support the Northrop Grumman Tanker Project: www.KeepOurTanker.com

(The above link redirects the visitor to www.ComeBackHomeToMobile.com.)

Fort Morgan Civic Association votes down settlement

By RYAN DEZEMBER

Staff Reporter

The Fort Morgan Civic Association has refused a proposed settlement with Gulf Shores that would have ended a long-running legal dispute over construction controls along the Fort Morgan peninsula.

The settlement called for special zoning for the peninsula and obliged the city to hire a consultant of both sides' choosing to draft a development plan for the slender spit of sand.

Paul Barefield, the Civic Association president, said that the 400-member group voted Monday night, after considering the proposal for about three months. For every member in favor, 10 were opposed, he said.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Protest freezes contract process

Boeing's rapid challenge of tanker deal invokes 'automatic stay of performance'

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

By SEAN REILLY

Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON -- The Air Force halted work on an airborne refueling tanker contract Tuesday after Boeing Co. formally appealed the military's decision to award the deal to a team led by Northrop Grumman Corp. and its partner, EADS North America.

Because the protest to the U.S. Government Accountability Office came within five days after Boeing was 'debriefed" on the reasons for its loss, "there is an automatic stay of performance," Lt. Col. Jennifer Cassidy, an Air Force spokeswoman, said via e-mail. She declined comment on whether the Air Force might seek a waiver that would allow the project to move forward in Mobile.

A spokesman for Los Angeles-based Northrop could not be reached for comment late Tuesday afternoon on the potential effect of the Air Force's pause. On Friday, one executive had indicated that construction on Northrop's part of the $600 million assembly plant at Brookley Field Industrial Complex would begin by month's end.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Click here for our index of articles and information on the Northrop Grumman tanker project.

Executive chef enjoys creating culinary delights at Cosmo's

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

By LESLEY FARREY PACEY

Correspondent

Chef Jack Baker is the genius behind the delicious dishes devoured daily at Cosmo's Restaurant and Bar in Orange Beach.

The Tuscaloosa native, a cook since age 14, helped create the menu at the popular eatery and has been its executive chef since it opened in May 2006.

"The owner, Brian Harsany, and I sat down before it opened," Baker said. "He had some things he wanted to make sure were on the menu and the rest was left up to me with exception of other manager recommendations."

Click here to read the full story from the Mobile Press-Register.

Click here for more information about Cosmo's Restaurant.

The boat ramp, the mouse and the cat

By HARDY JACKSON
Special to the Press-Register

OK. Here are the facts, as best I can ascertain.

The beach mouse is endangered; we know that. So anything that would further endanger what is already in danger cannot be allowed.

Recreational boating is a big deal down along the Alabama Gulf Coast. It entertains folks and brings in a lot of money.

Orange Beach has two public boat ramps, at Cotton Bayou and Boggy Point. When the weather warms and the weekends come, the public, for whom the ramps were built, uses them -- a lot. Cars and trucks and trailers spill out of the parking area, line the shoulder of the road, obstruct traffic, and inconvenience everybody.

Solution? Build another public ramp.

Where? Well, how about on five acres of state-owned land on Perdido Key, which has easy access to the Gulf?

But there is opposition.

Across the way is Ono Island, a gated enclave where multimillionaires have mega-mansions. They don't want the ramp. And on Perdido Key, near the place where the ramp is to be built, are the Caribe Resort condominiums. Those folks don't want it, either.

Why? Because it would further endanger the endangered Perdido Key beach mouse.

Say what?

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Environment symposium set Friday

Perdido Bay Foundation to hold discussion on sewage problems in east Baldwin

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

By GUY BUSBY

Staff Reporter

After more than a decade of community involvement, Perdido Bay Foundation members plan to expand the group's impact with a new office and more programs relevant to Baldwin County's environmental challenges.

On Friday, the foundation will formally open its office on U.S. 98 in Lillian with a ribbon-cutting at 8:30 a.m. and then conduct a symposium on local issues related to sewer services from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., said Robert Donnenwirth, foundation president.

The new office is at 34173 U.S. 98. It will offer public information and education about Perdido Bay.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Bonner staffer to make county stops

by Nancy Wall

A staff member from the office of U.S. Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile, will make three stops in Baldwin County on Wednesday.

The representative will be available at the following three sites:

• Bay Minette City Hall, 9:30 to 10:30 a.m.
  
• Fairhope City Hall, 11 a.m. to noon
• Gulf Shores City Hall, 3 to 4 p.m.

The purpose of the visits is to meet with any constituents who may be experiencing difficulties with the federal government and who are seeking Bonner's assistance in resolving these problems.

"I certainly hope anyone experiencing problems with the federal government will take the opportunity to come meet with my staff," Bonner said. "I want to do all I can to be of assistance and hope the public won't hesitate to contact me whenever they need any help."

For more information on this visit, contact Bryan Parker, Bonner's district representative, at 943-2073 or 800-288-8721.

Click here to visit Rep. Bonner's website.

Northrop Grumman Sets the Record Straight Concerning the U.S. Air Force KC-45A Misinformation

LOS ANGELES -- March 10, 2008 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) said today that since the Air Force's selection of the Northrop Grumman KC-45A, numerous erroneous comments continue to be repeated in the media and in Congress. Northrop Grumman wants to set the record straight on the following points:

Northrop Grumman, a Los Angeles-based company with over 120,000 employees, is the KC-45A tanker prime contractor
* A contract between the U.S. Air Force and Northrop Grumman
Corporation for the Northrop Grumman KC-45A was signed on Feb.
29, 2008.

* Northrop Grumman KC-45A primary subcontractors include EADS-North
America, General Electric, Honeywell, AAR Cargo Systems, Sargent
Fletcher, Knight Aerospace Products, Parker and Telephonics.

Jobs
* The Northrop Grumman KC-45A U.S. supplier base includes 230
companies in 49 states.

* The Northrop Grumman KC-45A tanker will support more than 25,000
direct and indirect jobs in the United States -- a conservative
estimate based upon the U.S. Department of Commerce aerospace
industry jobs projection formula.

* Using more recent data from our suppliers and applying the Labor
Department's formula for projecting aerospace jobs at the state
and regional level, the KC-45A will employ approximately 48,000
direct and indirect jobs nationwide.

* Assembly and militarization of the Northrop Grumman KC-45A tanker
will take place in Mobile, Ala., resulting in the creation of
1,500 jobs in the United States.

* Job creation was not a part of the evaluation criteria, in
accordance with federal law.

* The Northrop Grumman KC-45A tanker program does not transfer any
jobs from the United States to France or any other foreign
country.

Repayable Loans / WTO Dispute Issue
* The U.S. Department of Defense ruled that the disputes involving
Boeing and Airbus currently being adjudicated by the World Trade
Organization were not relevant to the U.S. Air Force's KC-X
Tanker competition.

Acquisition Process
* The KC-45A competition underwent the most rigorous, fair and
transparent acquisition process in Defense Department history.

* Throughout the process, both competitors in the KC-45A
acquisition hailed the Air Force for conducting a fair and open
competition.

* The size of the proposed tanker aircraft was not dictated by the
Air Force nor was size an established criteria -- each contractor
was free to propose the best solution and platform to meet Air
Force warfighter requirements.

* Both contractors had ample opportunity in the protracted
acquisition and source selection process to propose the best
aerial refueling capability to meet the warfighter's
requirements.

Reduced Risk to the Government
* The first Northrop Grumman KC-45A tanker aircraft was built in
July 2007 and flown in September 2007.

* The Northrop Grumman KC-45A Aerial Refueling Boom System has
completed 73 test flights totaling more than 200 flight hours.
The boom completed the first in-flight fuel transfer on Feb. 29,
2008 passing 2,000 pounds of fuel to a Portuguese Air Force F-16
combat aircraft.

* The Northrop Grumman KC-45A is based upon the Royal Australian
Air Force KC-30B Multirole Tanker -- which has been built, flown,
and is undergoing flight tests. It will be delivered on schedule
to the Royal Australian Air Force in early 2009.

* Boeing's proposed KC-767AT tanker and refueling boom were never
built, flown or tested.

Industrial Base
* The Northrop Grumman KC-45A tanker program will create a new
aerospace manufacturing corridor in the southeastern United
States.

* The KC-45A program helps return competitiveness to the U.S.
aerospace industry.

Foreign Content
* All modern jetliners are built from a global supplier base, and
the two entrants in the KC-45A competition are no exception.

* Boeing's proposed tanker includes parts manufactured in Japan,
United Kingdom, Canada and Italy.

* Northrop Grumman tanker includes parts built in the United
Kingdom, Germany, Spain and France -- countries exempt under the
Buy America Law.

* The Northrop Grumman KC-45A will include approximately 60 percent
U.S. content. It is America's tanker.

Foreign Suppliers to U.S. Military Programs
* There are numerous examples of transatlantic cooperation on vital
U.S. military programs. Foreign suppliers currently play
essential roles in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the VH-71
Presidential Helicopter and the C-27J Joint Cargo Aircraft
program.

* No sensitive military technology will be exported to Europe. For
the KC-45A program, a commercial A330 jetliner will be assembled
by American workers in EADS's facility in Mobile. The aircraft
will then undergo military conversion in an adjacent Northrop
Grumman facility. All of the KC-45A's critical military
technology will be added by an American company, Northrop
Grumman, in America, in Mobile, Ala.

Northrop Grumman Corporation is a $32 billion global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide.

CONTACT: Randy Belote
(703) 875-8525
randy.belote@ngc.com

Tim Paynter
(321) 961-1101
tim.paynter@ngc.com

Tanker plant impact should ripple to Gulf

Monday, March 10, 2008
By KATHY JUMPER
Real Estate Editor

Northrop Grumman Corp.'s winning a $40 billion jet tanker contract was a ray of sunshine for a condominium-glutted resort market and the Eastern Shore, which has had more newly built homes than buyers.

Anybody with any money who is moving to Mobile will also come to the beach, according to Larry Wireman, developer of two luxury condo projects in Orange Beach: Caribe Resort and Turquoise Place, which starts closing its 173 units in May.

Northrop "is the best news I've heard in a long time. There will be so much industrial business built around Mobile, it will be unreal."

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Orange Beach Charterboat Captain Rob Gams makes Tuscaloosa Newspaper

By Robert DeWitt

Anglers, charter fleets must adjust to red snapper regulations

ORANGE BEACH | With red snapper fishing regulations, change seems to be the norm. This year will be no exception.

'Part of the problem and frustration the anglers have is that the regulations are always changing,' said Kevin Anson, a state biologist who specializes in recreational fishing.

This year, federal regulators slashed the red snapper season by two months. The season won't open until June 1, more than a month later than usual, and it will close Sept. 30, a month late.

The limit is two fish 16 inches long or longer per person and the captain and crew aren't allowed to keep fish.

In addition, anglers will be required to use a non-stainless steel circle hooks to catch all reef fish. Conventional 'J' hooks will be outlawed for snapper, grouper, amberjack and other reef species.

Orange Beach's charter fleet has staked its reputation on red snapper. Much of the charter fleet virtually quits fishing when snapper season is out. Shortening the season by two months will hurt some charter captains.

But Rob Gams, owner and captain of the 42-foot charter boat Cool Breeze for 17 years, said it's something the charter industry must learn to adapt to.

'I think people are always going to go fishing,' Gams said. 'I think it's going to change the charter industry.'

Click here to read the full article from the Tuscaloosa News.

High Gas Prices could mean more tourists along the Alabama Gulf Coast

RV owners won't let pump prices keep them off the road
Sunday, March 09, 2008

How many times have you been driving down the interstate recently and passed a motor home and thanked the Lord that you weren't driving one of those things into a gas station?

The thought of filling up a motor home or even a six-wheeled pickup towing a fifth-wheel RV can be a little unnerving these days.

Surely the owners of such vehicles will stay home this spring to save money.

Yeah, right.

During a slow economy, recreation tends to take a weak hit. Folks may not have enough discretionary money to put a new sprinkler system in their yard, but they are going to go play somewhere.

You're still going to see plenty of RVs on the road this year. What you won't be able to see is their destination. Shorter trips closer to home will be the norm.

"A family that might have gone on a trip to Maine this summer will go to Gulf Shores instead," Jim Cooley, the owner of the Dandy RV Superstore in Oxford, told me this past week.

Click here to read the full article from the Birmingham News.

Blakeley state docks tours

Additional excursion set Thursday after first sells out

by Jo Ann Flirt

After the first excursion sold out, Historic Blakeley State Park has scheduled an additional boat tour of the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta, which will include visits to the Alabama state docks.

The new tour aboard the Delta Explorer is slated to leave the Blakeley State Park dock on the Tensaw River at 9:30 a.m. Thursday and return at noon that day.

The tour route travels up the Tensaw River, cuts across the wild delta area into Bayou Canot, site of the deadly 1993 Amtrak train derailment and past the spot where the slave ship Clotilde was sunk. The route then moves down the Mobile River along the state docks and Port of Mobile - where a guide from the docks will board the boat and guide the tour - and back to Blakeley.

"We are scheduling this second trip because of the large number of inquiries we have received from people who were too late to buy tickets on the first tour," said Jo Ann Flirt, park director. The park scheduled the tour in March so that snowbirds could participate, Flirt said.

"The special archaeological tour up to the Indian Mounds of Bottle Creek also sold out early and we have inquiries about another excursion up there but the river water is too high now up in the Delta," she said.

Bottle Creek tours aboard the park's Delta Explorer will be rescheduled in the fall by the University of South Alabama Center for Archaeological Studies."

Tickets for the state docks tour cost $30 for adults and $15 for children and are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Tickets can be ordered by telephone and paid for by credit card by calling 251-626-5581.

Regular "walk-on" tours that last two hours are scheduled for Saturday and March 29. A special St. Patrick's Day tour March 17 will feature an hour-long stop for a Dutch treat lunch at the Blue Gill Restaurant on the Causeway.

These regular tours cost $20 for adults, $10 for children aged 6-12, and free for children younger than 6. Seating on each journey is limited to 50.

For more information, or to order tickets, call 251-626-5581. Blakeley state park also offers charter trips for private and school groups. For rates and booking, call Joyce Walker at 251-626-0798.

Historic Blakeley State Park is on Alabama 225 about 4.5 miles north of its intersection with U.S. 31 in Spanish Fort. The park's boat, the Delta Explorer, is a covered pontoon boat equipped with a restroom. The boat and its captain are licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Chili cook-off Saturday in Foley's Heritage Park

by Colette Boehm

As chili teams vie for top honors, entertainers from a variety of musical genres will perform for the crowds at the Habitat for Humanity Chili Cook-Off, set for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Heritage Park in Foley. Tickets are $5 and proceeds will go to Habitat's Women Build project.

"We're thrilled about this year's entertainment lineup," said event organizer Rosemary Harris. "This is a fun chili competition and a great time for the whole family."

In addition to the entertainment, there will be a bake sale and silent auction. "This year," Harris said, "we've added a book sale, too. We have hundreds of books that are real bargains for book lovers. There really is something for everyone."

The entertainment schedule includes: Atir Arts Belly Dancers, 9:30 a.m.; The Aldridge Family, 10 a.m.; Four Winds Barber Shop Chorus, 11 a.m.; Elaine Petty, noon; and Ken Mathews, 1 p.m.

Gold sponsors are Bay Community Church, Riviera Utilities and Thomas Hospital. Silver sponsors are Bancorp South, Bryant Bank, Century Tel, Hartmann, Blackmon & Kilgore, Hellmich Electric, Island Orthodontics, Longcrier Builders, Ramona Hill, Reynolds Ready Mix, Safe Harbor Financial Services, Verizon Wireless and Vision Bank in Gulf Shores.

About 20 chili teams are expected to compete for first, second and third places, people's choice and for showmanship awards. Judging will take place at noon. For more information on the cook-off or other ways to support or volunteer for Women Build, call Harris at 943-7268.

Habitat for Humanity provides housing to qualifying families through sweat equity partnerships and no interest loans. The 2008 project will be the ninth annual Women Build in Baldwin County. Since the affiliate was organized in 1990, 65 homes have been built.

Orange Beach event will showcase art, new center

Festival of Art set for Saturday and Sunday at Waterfront Park

Thursday, March 06, 2008

By LEIGH T. MOORE

Correspondent

Visual demonstrations, live entertainment and fine art are three of the attractions visitors will find at the Orange Beach Art Center's 2008 Festival of Art on Saturday and Sunday.

And if that's not enough, the weather and view at Waterfront Park in Orange Beach will hopefully provide the perfect palette, organizers said.

"This is the same festival the Pleasure Island Art Association has done for decades in Orange Beach," said Wanda Price, coordinator for the art center. "The city purchased the location and made it the Orange Beach Art Center so there would be a continuation of the arts on display and the fine arts festival in the city."

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

City buys lots near community center

Orange Beach council says yes to Wharf negotiations

Thursday, March 06, 2008

By RYAN DEZEMBER

Staff Reporter

ORANGE BEACH -- With eyes toward relocating its Parks and Recreation Department closer to the Canal Road facilities it oversees, the City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to buy two Walker Road lots.

The council will pay $140,000 for a 100-square-foot parcel featuring a small building and $240,000 for a larger lot upon which sits a building housing Hart's All Service Inc. Robert and Jayne Hart own the business and are selling the property, city records show.

The smaller lot is immediately north of the parcel where the city's Fire Station No. 2 used to sit. A slender lot then separates the 1,000-square-foot property from the larger tract.

Click here to read the full story from the Mobile Press-Register.

Gulf Shores to start administrator search

Council plans to approve contract with firm to corral candidates

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

By RYAN DEZEMBER

Staff Reporter

GULF SHORES -- Having decided that they will seek a city administrator, elected officials said this week they plan to enlist a consulting firm to help find the right hire.

The City Council first interviewed Robert Slavin, president of Slavin Management Consulting, three years ago and selected the Norcross, Ga.-based firm to lead its nationwide search for an administrator. But Mayor G.W. "Billy" Duke III promoted Economic Development Director Ernie Smith to the position before the search began.

Smith returned to his old job last fall after 2½ years as city administrator. Previously Tony Rivera had held the city's top non-elected post for 13 years.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Major Changes Looming for Grouper Anglers

03-03-2008- Florida Sportsman Magazine -
No use cryin' about it next season. Share your input NOW! All reef anglers on Gulf and Atlantic coasts must read this.

Gulf of Mexico federal waters:
>Possible recreational grouper season closure—Jan.-April, maybe longer—under study No fishing for any shallow-water grouper during that period
>Bag limit could drop to one (1) gag per angler
>Size limits may change
>Commercial quotas, and allocation, also up for review
>New marine reserves may come on line
>Good news is red grouper limits may loosen some

Learn everything about these issues in the draft public hearing document, which you can obtain by calling the Council at (813) 348-1630; email gulfcouncil@gulfcouncil.org.

The Gulf Council wants to know how you feel about the gag and red grouper fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico—population trends, remarks on limits, potential impacts of season closures or other measures. Call your buddies and car-pool to one of following public hearings. They begin at 6 p.m. at the following locations:

March 12 - Erie Meyer Civic Center 10300 2nd St. Gulf Shores, AL.

Click here to read the full article from Florida Sportsman Magazine.

Second public partnership sought by AIG Baker

Developers want rebate for each out-of-towner they bring to proposed meeting facility

Monday, March 03, 2008

By RYAN DEZEMBER

Staff Reporter

ORANGE BEACH -- Already engaged with the city in a 15-year revenue-sharing deal, developers of The Wharf seek a secondary partnership with the public, this time to build a 25,000-square-foot meeting facility.

The City Council will consider a resolution Tuesday that would kick start negotiations between the city and the Birmingham-based mall builder AIG Baker. Though the details are far from finalized, the developers have presented a sketch of what they seek from the city.

Essentially they want Orange Beach to rebate to them $1.20 for each day that each out-of-towner using the facility is in the city, according to a letter to city officials from AIG Baker's John Hogue Jr.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

Zach Baisden to Teach Acrylics

Beginning Tuesday, March 11th, Zach Baisden will be teaching a class in Acrylic Painting. The class, held each Tuesday for 4 weeks, begins at 9:00am and ends at 11:30am. The cost of the class is $70.

Zach Baisden has a Bachelor’s in Fine Arts and a Master in Art Education. The Art Center is delighted to have this excellent artist teaching. His 35 years of teaching experience will help you advance or begin your painting skills. Come by the Art Center to see a few of his paintings.

Call the Art Center at 981-2787 to enroll.

Long launches her re-election campaign

District 5 incumbent touts experience on board and in classroom

Sunday, March 02, 2008

Staff Report

Margaret Long, the District 5 representative for the Orange Beach and Gulf Shores area, announced last week that she will seek re-election as a member of the Baldwin County Board of Education.

"Having been a teacher in the county, I love Baldwin County and I love education, and I feel like I bring a lot to the board," Long said.

Long, who was first elected to the board in 2002 and has since served as chairwoman of the Policy Committee, is running as a Republican.

The seven members of the board serve six-year terms and earn $4,200 annually.

District 5 includes Orange Beach, Gulf Shores and Fort Morgan, as well as parts of Elberta, Lillian and Perdido Beach.

The GOP and Democratic primaries for county and statewide offices are set for June 3, according to the Baldwin County Probate Court's Web site. The general election is scheduled for Nov. 4.

Click here to read the full article from the Mobile Press-Register.

What the Air Force Tanker deal means to the Alabama Gulf Coast

March 1, 2008-- The Air Force Tanker contract awarded to Northrop-Grumman/EADS yesterday should have a huge impact on the Alabama Gulf Coast Economy. Listed below are links to articles and websites related to this story...



Note that these links are just a few of thousands of articles about this historic event. Click on the Google News Search link below to see how far this story is spreading.

From the Mobile Press-Register:
Air Force awards tanker contract to Northrop-EADS
Mobile on a Roll
Next challenge: Find the workforce
Local leaders make promises worth millions
What they're saying

From the Pensacola News Journal:
Mobile lands $40 Billion Dollar Deal
Contract good for Florida
Pensacola Chamber Officials Weigh-in
U.S. Rep. Miller applauds contract

From WPMI NBC-15:
AP Story with Public Comments
Brookley boasts rich aviation history
The most anticipated phone call of 2008
A Big Win: Mobile takes the spotlight
Everett, Washington residents "angry, shocked, outraged" by tanker decision
Governor Riley Statement on Selection of Mobile as Site for Aircraft Manufacturing

From WKRG TV-5:
Sen. Jeff Sessions: Historic For Alabama and Mobile
Alabama & Mobile Excited over $40 Billion Dollar Deal
Mobile Wins Air Force Tanker Contract
Gov. Riley: KC-30 Will Be Built By Patriotic People

Google News Search for this story.